Around 100 houses destroyed by fire in Samar

TACLOBAN CITY — At least 100 houses were destroyed by a fire in Calbayog City, Samar past 2 a.m. on Tuesday, April 18.

Senior Inspector Victor Ygbuhay, the city’s fire marshal, said the fire broke out in Barangay Carmen and hit parts of its adjacent village of Obrero.

Investigators have yet to determine the cause of the fire as well as the number of affected families.

“The houses were located almost close to each other and the pathways were narrow. We had a hard time putting the fire out,” Ygbuhay said in a phone interview.

The strong winds, he said, also did not help the firefighters.

While many residents were still sleeping, Ygbuhay said no one was reported injured or dead.

Based on their initial assessment, the fire destroyed 100 houses in Carmen and 20 houses in the nearby village of Obrero.

Damage was pegged at P3 million.

Carmen and Obrero have a population of more than 7,000.

Calbayog City Mayor Raymund Uy assured all the fire victims of assistance from the city government.

He said fire victims are temporarily housed at the city’s sports center and were given food packs by the city government.

Uy appealed to the different sectors of the community to also help extend assistance to the fire victims.

READ: 2 dead in Northern Samar town fire